


Break Apart

by MrMissMrsRandom



Category: Fire Emblem: Seisen no Keifu | Fire Emblem: Genealogy of the Holy War, Fire Emblem: Shin Ankoku Ryuu to Hikari no Ken | Fire Emblem: Shadow Dragon
Genre: Body Dysphoria, Deeper look into Dragon politics, Descent into Madness, Gen, Implied dragon eating, Implied people eating, Jugdral character-based but set in Archanea, Loptous referred to in gender-neutral pronouns, The end of the Age of Dragons
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-11
Updated: 2018-06-11
Packaged: 2019-05-21 00:29:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,663
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14905088
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MrMissMrsRandom/pseuds/MrMissMrsRandom
Summary: An Earth dragon's journey from their place at a prince's side to becoming a Dark God.





	Break Apart

Loptous was among the small group of dragons that had been gathered to meet with the King of the Divine Tribe. As the keeper of knowledge for the Earth Tribe, it was Loptous’s duty to stay at Prince Medeus’ side. Especially in such dark times as those that had begun to ensnare their kind.    
  
There hadn’t been any new dragons born in their tribe over a century. There was a growing wave of anxiety within their lands, and some had been given into fits of hysteria. Some, like their beloved king, had retreated into the earth with little more than a word of goodbye. This seclusion forced the prince to take over leadership for the tribe. Ursu, the king’s mate, had deferred judgment to their child and retreated into the desert lands in their grief. The young of the royal family had power foisted upon them unnaturally early in their long lives. Loptous themself was still only a few centuries into their own position as record keeper since the previous keeper’s death.    
  
It was such a long time ago, but even then, Loptous could still remember the first time they met the leader of the Divine Tribe. They had not been given the gift of premonition, but something within their soul squirmed in the presence of their radiance. As an Earth Dragon, Loptous thought that their own beauty was nothing to scoff at. They had scales that shone in the sunlight, a frilled crest that had inner hues as red as fresh blood, and long and fine claws, but something about being in Naga’s presence made Loptous feel small. They hated feeling small.    
  
Medeus was the picture of decorum, making all the appropriate offers and ceremonies for the fellow royal. Naga accepted them with grace, but both groups knew that this would be more than a simple courtesy call.    
  
“So, the Divine Tribe has also been suffering through this plague.” Medeus began.   
  
Naga eyes closed. “That is correct. The last time anyone of our tribe gave birth was when I did so my young. However, we have begun to track something of even greater consequence the last few decades.”   
  
“What is it?”   
  
Naga gestured to her company- a Fire dragon and a younger Divine dragon that kept their teeth taut against chains that held one of their own brethren, whose wings were slashed to prevent flight. Loptous could not hold back their hiss at the sight.    
  
“Chains are a human contraption! Why do you hold one of our kind in such a bestial way?!”    
  
“Peace, Loptous.” Medeus was firm, and Loptous held themselves from speaking out of turn again.   
  
“This was the only way we could transport him without the threat of violence to ourselves,” Naga explained, the king's face remained impassive before those eerie eyes turned towards Loptous. “Please, see for yourself.”    
  
Loptous remained still, only moving forward when their prince ordered them to. Getting a better look at their fellow dragon, Loptous noticed further wounds across their hide. They made soothing noises, only for the prisoner to snap their jaws towards them with an almost rabid growl, and Loptous got a look at their eyes- there was no intelligence, no understanding, no recognition at all.    
  
“Were they drugged?” Loptous asked, backing away. They could not treat the dragon’s wounds if they were unwilling to cooperate.    
  
“This was a young dragon by the name of Takshak. A few weeks ago he went to sleep among his immediate kin, and when another one of our tribe came to visit the next morning, they found him eating his mother.” Naga replied, pain and disgust coloring their voice. “His father and sibling were already half-consumed when they arrived. Without warning, he turned… feral. All of the wisdom within our race seemed to flee from him entirely. We have heard similar cases among the other tribes, but it has not hit the Earth Tribe?”    
  
Medeus continued to stare at Takshak struggling in his chains and making unintelligible cries and screeches that filled the air with discordance. “...I have not heard of any so far, but now I believe the past king might have foreseen such a calamity. I... will get into contact with the outskirts, and send a messenger to tell you what we find.”    
  
Naga nodded. “I am attempting to find cures for this insanity amongst our brethren, and I entrust you, and yours shall do the same.”   
  
After making their feelings known, Naga moved towards the feral dragon, still snapping his jaws and making unholy noises. Loptous had to turn away as Naga’s jaws snapped the dragon’s neck, the air surrounding them now filled with silence.    
  
Medeus’s voice was the only thing to break it. “Yes, King Naga.”    
  
(~)   
  
Years passed, but the tribes kept in touch through messages and scrying if necessary. Each tribe had an ambassador from the Mage Tribe skilled in the magical arts. All of Loptous’ time, when not performing their regular duties, was devoted to research of old and diving into their memories, trying to recall something their old master might have taught them that could be what their tribe needed to thrive again.    
  
However, Loptous’s research on the increasing bestial behavior of their kin with an unexpected threat. Humans, more inclined before to congregate in small villages or have a more nomadic lifestyle, had begun encroaching on the Earth Tribe’s territory.    
  
“It’s to be expected.” Medeus sighed, a soldier had given him the news of a human settlement near the coastline, around the space their tribe used for gathering fish from the sea. “Our lands are more accessible. The Divine and Flying Tribe stick to the mountains, while the Fire Tribe lives in domains unbearable for humans.”   
  
“They’re still a nuisance. We need to have firm control over our food stores, my prince.” Loptous replied. “We have agreements with the Dagons that we may fish in that area. Who is to say they will not take our share?”   
  
Yet Medeus was unmoved. “You overestimate their greed, Loptous.”    
  
“Or maybe you underestimate them,” Loptous replied. “As our leader, you have to think ahead-”   
  
“And what makes you think I haven’t?” Medeus interrupted, turning away from Loptous. “You’re job is to focus on trying to find a cure for this madness, while I try to find a way to protect our tribe.”   
  
Loptous bowed their head, then turned away from Medeus and went back to their work. It was frustrating, but Medeus had made a valid point. It was better to deal with the immediate threat. “Yes, my prince.”   
  
Besides, what harm could humans even do to a dragon?    
  
(~)   
  
The next winter, however, a human somehow slipped through their normal defensive perimeters. At least when Loptous was called to follow Medeus to meet the human, that is what they all had assumed.    
  
When they had made their way to the enclosure set up by the border guards for the trespasser, Loptous was assured that the young one in the cage was no ordinary human. They were not dressed for the desert heat they passed through to reach their lands, for starters- a simple dress of white and pink that offered hardly any protection from the midday sun or the blistering night winds. The headpiece she wore, gold with a single red stone as an ornament, was in the crude shape of a dragon.    
  
When she opened her lips, she spoke in the king’s voice. “Good to see you’ve come, Prince Medeus, and you, Lorekeeper.”   
  
The guards that had before been taciturn were now turning their heads back and forth at a loss at the welcome, but when they saw Medeus bow his head at the welcome, they all crouched and bore their necks in deference. Loptous’ body remained unbent, and the continued to gaze at the human with slit eyes.    
  
“King Naga, I suppose we know how you were able to make your way through our defense. How have you come to… possess such a form?” Medeus asked.    
  
“I can demonstrate as soon as your guards release me. I do not wish to damage this little cage you have me in.” Naga turned her gaze- bright green, the same color as her hair- towards Loptous. “I thought things such as cages and chains were the tools of savages?”    
  
Loptous’s jaw twitched, but they would not give the King the satisfaction of catching them in hypocrisy. “Humans have drawn closer to our land, and its necessary to take precautions. The guards did not know your true identity, Divine King. Otherwise, they would have chosen a more civilized way of detaining you.”   
  
“Loptous-”   
  
“Be at ease, Prince Medeus,” Naga replied. “I do not mind. Yet it does sadden me that you still hold such a low opinion of humanity. Perhaps what I have come to show you may open your mind.”    
  
Naga was set free, and from her robes produced an abnormally large jewel, cut clear and a bright shade of blue. She closed her eyes and raised it to the sky, and the entire vicinity was filled with light brilliant enough that Loptous was forced to look away. When light ebbed, the king in their correct form was there in the human’s place. All of the guards seemed shocked, even disgusted, but there was something in Medeus’s eyes- a glow of an idea, or perhaps a vision of the future that Loptous still hadn’t fully grasped.    
  
As they traveled back to their dwelling after swearing the guards to secrecy, Medeus and Naga’s heads bowed in conversation as Loptous trailed behind. The king had brought them a cure, but what would come at the cost of such measures?    
  
(~)   
  
When Medeus broke the news of the Manakete cure, the tribe’s response was divisive, to say the least.    
  
Some refused to debase themselves: what proud dragon would if they were not already in such dire circumstances? Some did so vehemently. Most simply returned to their homes, processing the shock.   
  
Loptous was part of the minority that decided to join Medeus when Naga would show them how to form their own dragonstones. They were just as apprehensive of such desperate measures, but knowing that this might be dragonkind’s best chance to find a stopgap from growing feral. If their tribe could keep their minds and the assurance that they may return to their previous bodies, then Loptous would be a tester. Members of the Fire Tribe and nearly all of the Divine Tribe had chosen to become Manaketes, and Naga told Medeus that incidents like Takshak’s had rapidly declined.    
  
The theory was proven, yet when Loptous embodied their manakete form for the first time, they felt the immediate sense of revulsion: that wasn’t them. This body had taken a form that they had not chosen for themselves. The long white hair that Loptous had to learn how to braid to keep out of their face with awkward motions of fingers that had once been clawed, the smaller limbs that could not reach or dig with the strength they had before, and the feeling of never being warm enough- it felt wrong. They clothed themselves in robes of black and gold, a weak substitute for their scales. The only thing that was familiar to them was the small scales that remained along their cheeks and hands and their red eyes. Everything else was new, and new was terrifying.    
  
But Loptous never shared their shifting bouts of disgust or horror with this body, because if they showed they were anything but content with being a Manakete, then Medeus’s plan would fall apart. That what little tethers that kept the Earth tribe from starting an outright rebellion would break under pressure.    
  
It had been a year into the experiment when Medeus gathered his fellow Manaketes together. His human form had aged in such a short time due to the stress of still being the leader of their tribe when very few in the tribe wanted anything to do with them. Medeus, however, had a plan to change all of that. Loptous would go to the nearest human settlement and blend in with the population, gathering information on how their kind must act among them. He hoped that finding more knowledge about the creatures they were now forced to emulate would make their brethren less anxious.    
  
Loptous decided it would be better to spend some time observing humans than suffering through more veiled glares and hisses from the tribe and agreed. However, the night before Loptous was to begin making their way to the coast, Medeus came to their dwelling with a grave look on their face.   
  
“I have been unable to reach the Dagons recently. It could be a shift in their migration patterns, but when you’re by the sea try to make contact if you can.”    
  
“I shall,” Loptous replied. “Why did you not share this information with the others?”   
  
“Because,” Medeus bared his teeth as he tried to formulate an answer. It looked far less ferocious, but a bit more grotesque. Loptous had researched some facial expressions and sayings of humans before they left, and the face Medeus was making would be best described as “pained.”    
  
“Yes, my prince?”    
  
“I don’t trust some of the others in the group,” Medeus confessed. “Most of them are growing on edge.”   
  
“Do you think the madness-?”   
  
“No, not that,” Medeus replied. “Keeping our draconic essence in the dragonstones has seemed to halt the process. However, I don’t believe we’re… fertile. Loptous, has this form bled for you?”   


Loptous wanted to retort that was not something they wanted to share but replied in a voice that had no emotion. “No. It hasn’t.”  
  
They knew that “it” was “them,” but they didn’t correct their words. Medeus, however, didn’t appear to notice as he carried on.  
  
“Keep track, then. You’re one of the few dragons I trust to keep the tribe together.”   
  
Loptous blinked. “That’s surprising. I thought you trusted King Naga above anyone else.”  
  
After all, Naga was the one who found this cure. It was the one Medeus was sending nearly a constant stream of messages to by way of bird carrier or scrying.   
  
“Naga? I see Naga as an ally, not a confidant.” Medeus objected, before reaching out and resting a hand on Loptous’s shoulder. “You are my advisor and confidant, my friend. I want you to know how my I rely on you to help our kind through these dark times.”   
  
Loptous felt the warmth of pride for the first time in a long time. They did their best to smile at Medeus. “I appreciate that, Prince Medeus. And as an answer to your trust and your friendship, I will complete these missions without fail.”   
  
(~)  
  
When Loptous first entered the fishing village their nose was overwhelmed by the stench of the sea, the creatures from it, as well as the various scents that they had been taught to expect, yet to actually experience it was vastly different. They kept their hood up to obscure their face and long gloves to hide their vestigial scales. Many eyes fell on them as they walked. Though Loptous held their form, they were still a stranger, and how violent humans could get to their own kind, it made sense that they would look on an outsider with suspicion. They walked among the crude huts and hovels constructed of ocean smoothed stone and driftwood towards the market until they passed a stall keeper sweating in front of his daily catch with a noticeable fever and a dirty bandage wrapped around their arm.   
  
Loptous took out one of their various pouches of herbs and offered a hand to the human. “I can help you with that.”   
  
“What, you gonna make me a new arm?” The human replied with a hoarse laugh, followed by a cough. The fever must have reached his lungs. “Should’ve chopped it when I had the chance, but need the money to feed my family…”  
  
Loptous walked behind the stall without another word and began to unwrap the bandages- it was not a pleasant sight. Whatever bit the fisherman had a nasty pair of jaws, and there were already signs of inflammation. Based on how much the human was sweating, a high chance of infection as well  
.   
“Anyone around to watch over your fish?”   
  
“Uh… well…”   
  
“You.” Loptous gestured to the woman in the nearby stall, holding two gold coins. “I’ll give you two more of these if you sell this man’s catch for the day, and let you take half the profits.”   
  
The woman looked ready to object, but the flash of gold made her say otherwise. Though human settlements still survived mostly on a barter system, some towns had begun to set up coins for exchange. Medeus had made sure Loptous was well stocked during their observation time. They helped the fisherman to his home, met the man’s mate and their offspring as Loptous began to scrape and rinse out what growth had gotten into the injured flesh.   
  
The man hollered bitterly during the entire exchange before passing out as Loptous doused his arm in a tonic of herbs. After washing their gloves and hands outside and putting on some spares, the hawker’s wife brought them a plate of dried fish and some sort of grain, which Loptous accepted. The manakete body felt nourished from this, but Loptous still felt awkward moving their jaws like this.   
  
“I’m so sorry we can’t offer you more for all your help. If you wait a few weeks so we can save up-”  
  
“No need.” Loptous interrupted before she fell to begging. “Some food and lodging for the next few days while I settle in is all I desire in return.”   
  
That was how Loptous found a place in the suspicious human community: they would offer medical advice and medicinal cures to the ill and their families, and in return was given supplies, food, or an extra blanket in the dwelling. Loptous refrained from using their magic capabilities for the most part, yet the humans called them a “magician.” It was confusing to be around creatures who had little knowledge of the arcane, and they learned to be more cautious with how much of their inhuman abilities were shown.   
  
Overall, though. The assignment was going… well, for the most part. Loptous still hadn’t been able to make contact with the Dagons, but the humans seemed to enjoy their presence. They introduced Loptous to the intricacies of human culture- their festivals, traditions, day-to-day struggles, and skills they learned to protect themselves from the elements. Primitive to a dragon’s capabilities, but they did hold a spark of potential.   
  
“Lop!” Loptous turned away from sorting through their herbs to find the youngest child of that fisherman they first helped months ago. Apparently, they called the child “daughter,” to distinguish the child’s sex. The daughter held something out for them. “A present for helping Papa! It took awhile to find the prettiest feathers, but hope you like them!”   
  
They gingerly took the item from the daughter’s hands to give it a closer inspection. It was a long strip of cured seal fur, with a variety of bird feathers attached. Despite how crude it was, there was obvious care taken in its crafting. Loptous felt something strange happen to their mouth.   
  
“Thank you, for the gift,” Loptous replied, before moving to attach the item to their waist, only to find it was still too long.   
  
“Oh, let me help!” The daughter moved forward, sorting through the long strip and going around Loptous’s waist twice before securing it with a small hook on the end of both sides of the strap. The dark blueish green of the sea bird’s plumage stood out against their black robes. “There, it looks pretty on you.”  
  
“...Right.” Loptous reached forward, and for the first time in the months they had spent in this village, they initiated affectionate contact, and pat the daughter’s dark curly mop of hair. “Pretty.”   
  
(~)  
  
Four days later, Loptous learned how savage humans could be.   
  
When the fishing rafts came back to show that morning they had been drawn to the shoreline by the overwhelming scent of blood. Perhaps someone was injured biting off more than they could chew, and their services were required.   
  
What they found was not the case.   
  
The fishermen were crowded around something, brandishing carving knives and harpoons. It was apparently a  big catch, perhaps a small whale, and they were dividing and preparing the meat. One of the fishermen noticed their presence and waved them over.   
  
“Hello, Loptous! The village is gonna have a feast tonight! Pick up a knife and give us a hand would you?”   
  
The break in the circle allowed Loptous direct view of a large, dull, yellow eye. Loptous felt their heart, if it could, stop. The rushed forward, shoving the fisherman back for an unobstructed view.   
  
The half-butchered form of a juvenile Dagon. Their stomach had been cut open already to remove unwanted intestines, and their jaws were opened in horror, as if still aware of their terrible. They must have been the youngest in their tribe, their last hope. Faintly, Loptous remembered the time when while a hatchling, they came across a bird’s egg, only to find it broken and swarming with ants.   
  
“Ah-” Loptous kneeled and cradled the juvenile’s face, and started to scream, and scream.  
  
Until one of the ants that surrounded Loptous and the dead Dagon touched their arm. Loptous took the dragonstone from their pouch, and their screams became roars.   
  
When Loptous regained their Manakete form, they were surrounded by the carnage that they wrought. No, this was not carnage.  
  
Loptous bent down to close the juvenile’s eyes, before taking a cold glance over the dead humans.   
  
This was justice.   
  
(~)  
  
Loptous couldn’t return to the tribe after failing their mission and face Medeus’s judgment, but nor could he return to a human settlement and watch their atrocities towards their brethren. So, much like the king had done, they retired into the earth- into caves and tunnels they dug out and hid from the world. They remained out of Manakete form for as long as they could stand. Each time, it got easier and easier.   
  
Any unwitting human that fell into their den would be killed, then eaten. Their flesh tasted disgusting, but whenever he bit down, Loptous remembered the Dagon’s glazed over eye, jaws open as if to scream.   
  
Loptous would break the weak bones to get at the marrow.   
  
Who could they blame? As the days grew longer in the darkness, the harder it was to return to Manakete form the longer they remained in their form, they were left to think, and think. On days they had more clarity, they would reach out for the explanation Naga had given Medeus: that it was a natural process, one they had no power over. But that excuse didn’t hold as the once soothing earth became a personal hell, as the shadows of their mind danced on the cave walls and mocked them.  
  
Naga knew nothing. The king placed human filth on a pedestal only to get shat on as she looked up at them with her mouth open wide. And Medeus, their prince, their leader, accepted the disgusting idea to take the facade of such disgusting creatures without looking without letting them keep their honor as they all descended into madness.  
  
Loptous hated them all. Hate, hate, hate-  
  
(~)  
  
When Galle entered the cave after following a trail of local legends and hearsay during his travels across Archanea, he didn’t know what to expect as he clutched to the holy symbol of the earth goddess Ethnia around his neck. Would he meet a grizzly fate like many who dared come to a dragon’s dwelling unannounced, or would he only find scraps and realize the stories were all a lie, and his long search was all for naught?   
  
Then a raspy and rough voice entered into his mind. _What vermin has attempted to enter my domain?_   
  
Galle quickly fell to the ground in a deep bow. “O wise Earth dragon, I come begging to learn the magical arts of you and your powerful brethren.”  
  
The voice was still before a guttural laugh replied.   
  
_Well, vermin. Come into my den if you wish to so ardently pay your respects._  
  
Holding their holy symbol and sending a quick prayer, Galle entered the cave. The stench of dirt and decay nearly overwhelmed their sense, but they made no move to cover their face or look down at the broken bones around his feet.   
  
“May I light a torch?” Galle called out.   
  
_You may._  
  
Galle fumbled in the dark for one of his sticks and kindling, setting it alight with a quick burst of fire magic. What awaited him was the large and decrepit form of a black-scaled, serpentine dragon. The scales were covered in dust, and their eyes were covered by cataracts. Still, their teeth were long a sharp, and could easily crush Galle with one snap of the bottom jaw. Galle tried to stop his legs from shaking.   
  
_So you wish to learn magic- why is that human?_  
  
Galle did their best to gather his thoughts as a long dragon claw inched towards him.  
  
_Or I can eat you now-_  
  
“I want to gain more knowledge and power!” Galle interjected in his fear. “I came from a land called Jugdral and learned from priests that follow the faith of Ethnia, the blessed earth goddess and both lover and adversary to Yudu, the sky lord. I respect the earth dragon’s plight, and wish to retain their knowledge and ways, and, and…”  
  
The cave went deathly silent, and Galle sent one final prayer to his deity before his demise. But it never came.  
  
_Heh. Hehe. Hahahahahaha-_  
  
The voice started low but grew until Galle had to clutch his head from the volume of the laughter.   
  
Loptous let out laughter that grew more twisted as they continued. Was this how Takshak felt when they went mad and ate their family? No, this was not madness. It was clarity.   
  
_Bring paper and quill tomorrow, and I will dictate to you all that I know._  
  
Galle did what was bid of him, because like all humans he was terrified of superior beings, but also sought and craved to become like them. A small thing that wanted to be bigger than it was. Galle was the perfect human for Loptous’s plan.   
  
After weeks of dictation, Galle finished Jormagand, Fenrir, and Hel. These tomes, with the proper incantation and power behind it, would bid the forces of that which dwells underneath the earth and in its darkest depths. But Loptous told Galle that they would honor their ‘pupil’ with a special tome that harnessed the earth dragon’s own personal knowledge.  
  
Galle came back with the necessary materials, and they began. It was a long and arduous process, with Galle crying out and having to stop, but Loptous didn’t press him when he wished to stop. They needed Galle alive.   
  
When the tome was finished, Loptous produced their dimmed dragonstone, placing it in the chamber that they had instructed Galle to put in the center of the tome’s binding. It was the darkest knowledge at their disposal, and they would pervert it even further.   
  
“Thank you, O mighty Loptous. But… despite you dictation, this is in a language I do not fully understand.”   
  
Loptous gnawed at the flesh of their arm, creating a deep enough gash that blood began to flow.   
  
_Come and drink my blood, or the words I have given to you will have no power over life and death._  
  
Galle paused, as if fearful to approach, but then walked forward and bowed his head down to drink deeply, and Loptous knew no matter what, they would have their vengeance over humankind. For what they had done and what they would do.  
  
If it took becoming a demon to make that a reality, so be it.   


**Author's Note:**

> -The inclusion of the Dagon in this story is based on fe15's description of their subspecies, which mentions that they have delicious meat to humans. 
> 
> -Galle's words are my ideas about the Jugdral mythos before the rise of the Galles and birth of the Crusaders. The names "Ethnia" and "Yudu" are terms for previous gods of Jugdral referenced vaguely in fe5 or in outside materials. Ethnia was associated with the earth and Yudu with the sky. I headcanon that much of the religious iconography and practices of worshipping these two deities were regulated or destroyed by Loptous' followers, and only remain mostly in folktales and legend. There are one-two characters in fe4/fe5 that are named Ethnia- Tailtiu's younger sister and the Queen of Alster, Miranda's mother (who could be the same person). I also think that "Eth" is a popular beginning of girl's names, (as seen with Ethlyn).


End file.
